Clinical Slovakia overpowers Moldova with 4-0 win in Chisinau
Moldova suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat against Slovakia in the UEFA Nations League on Tuesday night, as the visiting side capitalized ruthlessly on defensive lapses at Zimbru Stadium in Chisinau.
Early missed chances prove costly
The home side began aggressively, threatening first in the fourth minute when Vladimir Fratea fired narrowly wide of Dominik Greif’s right post from outside the penalty area. Just two minutes later, Moldova missed their best opportunity of the match when Nicky Clescenco seized on a defensive mistake to break clear one-on-one, only to drag his strike off target.
Slovakia capitalized immediately on the let-off, opening the scoring in the eighth minute. Following a free kick, defender Milan Skriniar had two attempts blocked inside the box before David Strelec pounced on the loose ball to slot home the rebound.
Moldova attempted to respond through long-range efforts by Petru Popescu and Sergiu Perciun, but Greif remained alert in the Slovak goal. After David Hancko fired over for the visitors, Perciun had another clear chance following a defensive error, yet Greif produced a decisive save to preserve the lead.
Second-half dominance seals victory
Slovakia doubled their advantage moments before the interval. In the 44th minute, Tomas Suslov unleashed a strike from 25 meters, and while Moldovan goalkeeper Dumitru Celeadnic got a hand to the ball, he could not prevent it from crossing the line for 0-2.
The visitors put the game beyond reach on the hour mark. Lukas Haraslin broke into the penalty area following a long pass and cut the ball back to Hancko, whose powerful deflected effort off Ioan-Calin Revenco found the net.
Moldova came close to pulling one back in the 72nd minute with a deflected free kick by Cristian Dros that looped over the crossbar. Slovakia answered with a fourth goal four minutes later, as substitute Leo Sauer surged down the right wing and delivered a low cross for Haraslin to tap in from close range.
A late long-range strike from Perciun in the 89th minute was tipped around the post by Greif, leaving the hosts scoreless at the final whistle. The result cements Slovakia at the top of Group 3 in League C with 10 points. Moldova and the Faroe Islands sit level on four points each, while Kazakhstan trails with two. Moldova concludes the campaign in November with a home match against Kazakhstan and an away fixture in the Faroe Islands.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
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